Robinhood Lays Off 10% of Staff Despite Record Trading Volumes

Robinhood Markets is cutting about 290 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, the company disclosed in a Tuesday SEC filing. The layoffs come even as the brokerage posts record trading volumes across equities, options, and prediction markets for June month-to-date.

The cuts are Robinhood's first in three years. CEO Vlad Tenev told staff in a note that the decision reflects the company's commitment to staying "lean & disciplined" and demanding "high performance," according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the move. Robinhood said it is acting "from a position of business strength."

The timing is unusual. Robinhood reported a 15% revenue increase in its most recent quarter, though the figure missed analyst estimates and the stock dipped. The revenue mix is shifting: crypto trading revenue fell roughly 47% year over year, while subscription services and prediction markets have grown into larger pieces of the business.

Tenev last week announced Robinhood can now serve as an underwriter for IPOs. In May, he said the company's first fund for retail access to private markets had drawn 150,000 customers. "It's also just the beginning," Tenev said at the WSJ's Future of Everything event. "The aspiration is, if you're a company raising a seed round and a Series A round, retail should be a big chunk of that round."

Robinhood's Alpha Score sits at 52 out of 100, with a Mixed label, reflecting the tension between record activity and a contracting headcount. The stock page is HOOD stock page.